Office of Aerospace Medicine Technical Reports
FAA Office of Aerospace Medicine
Civil Aerospace Medical Institute
Report No: DOT/FAA/AM-71/4
Title and Subtitle: Use of skin temperature to predict tolerance to thermal environments
Report Date: January 1971
Authors: Iampietro PF
Abstract: Skin temperature is a sensitive index of the effect of the thermal environment on the seminude man. Skin temperatures and tolerance times from several studies have been utilized in an attempt to establish a relationship between (1) final skin temperature and tolerance time and (2) skin temperature during the early minutes of exposure and final skin temperature.
The number of subjects during each exposure ranged from five to ten. Exposure temperatures ranged from -4 to 113C (25 to 235F). Air movement ranged from about 50 to 880 ft/min. Many criteria were used to fix tolerance time: for hot exposure we used T(r) = 102.5, HR - 180 beats/min, nausea, etc.; for cold exposures we used toe temperatures below 4.4C (40F) and subjective evaluations.
A relationship exists between final temperature and tolerance time and between final skin temperature and skin temperature at ten minutes of exposure. Final skin temperature (at tolerance) in hot and cold environments can be predicted from the skin temperature at ten minutes. Tolerance time may also be estimated from the ten minute skin temperature.
Key Words: Tolerance--Physiology, Heat, Cold, Human, Thermal Exposure, Skin Temperature, Prediction of Tolerance
No. of Pages: 8
Civil Aerospace Medical Institute
Report No: DOT/FAA/AM-71/4
Title and Subtitle: Use of skin temperature to predict tolerance to thermal environments
Report Date: January 1971
Authors: Iampietro PF
Abstract: Skin temperature is a sensitive index of the effect of the thermal environment on the seminude man. Skin temperatures and tolerance times from several studies have been utilized in an attempt to establish a relationship between (1) final skin temperature and tolerance time and (2) skin temperature during the early minutes of exposure and final skin temperature.
The number of subjects during each exposure ranged from five to ten. Exposure temperatures ranged from -4 to 113C (25 to 235F). Air movement ranged from about 50 to 880 ft/min. Many criteria were used to fix tolerance time: for hot exposure we used T(r) = 102.5, HR - 180 beats/min, nausea, etc.; for cold exposures we used toe temperatures below 4.4C (40F) and subjective evaluations.
A relationship exists between final temperature and tolerance time and between final skin temperature and skin temperature at ten minutes of exposure. Final skin temperature (at tolerance) in hot and cold environments can be predicted from the skin temperature at ten minutes. Tolerance time may also be estimated from the ten minute skin temperature.
Key Words: Tolerance--Physiology, Heat, Cold, Human, Thermal Exposure, Skin Temperature, Prediction of Tolerance
No. of Pages: 8
Last updated: Friday, June 1, 2012